GOP and Democrats revamp party platforms on Israel: What to know

MILWAUKEE — In the nine months since the Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israel and ensuing war in Gaza, the conflict reshaped the political landscape and put each party’s position on the Jewish state front and center.

The Democratic Party advanced an 80-page platform on Tuesday that touts the Biden administration’s support for Israel despite efforts from a faction of far-left activists who pushed for changes on how the party approaches the Jewish state. 

The GOP platform was quietly finalized this week at the Republican National Convention and doubles down on support for Israel, but is not as descriptive and does not go as far as the one the party embraced in 2016. 

Principles First founder Heath Mayo, whose “pro-democracy, anti-Trump” conservative organization had an event at the convention Wednesday, vented that it is “frustrating to see a lot of core things left out” of the Republican platform.

“This is not a serious statement of where we stand on anything,” Mayo told the Washington Examiner and lamented the lack of prominence of Israel. “This is just sort of a hodgepodge of what looked to be Trump’s tweets about just mushy, mealy mouth stuff that doesn’t really mean anything.”

Here’s a look at what the platforms say about Israel and the criticisms of them both.

The Democratic platform 

The platform, which will be adopted by delegates at the party convention in Chicago next month, reinforces the party’s support of Israel, according to portions obtained by the Washington Examiner.

On the war in Gaza specifically, the platform states that the United States “strongly supports Israel in the fight against Hamas,” while highlighting the progress Biden has made in his efforts to negotiate a hostage release deal and a ceasefire. 

The document emphasizes a “strong, secure and democratic Israel is vital to the interests of the United States,” while also committing to Israel’s security and right to defend itself. The platform also notes Biden’s support for a foreign aid package for Israel and Ukraine that was passed by Congress earlier this year, which included $17 billion in security aid for the Jewish state. 

The document also discusses the potential of a two-state solution after Gaza is reconstructed “in a manner that does not allow Hamas to rearm.”

“It would create the conditions for a better future for the Palestinian people, one of self-determination, dignity, security, and freedom, and ultimately a state of their own — a contrast to [former president Donald] Trump, who refuses to endorse the political aspirations of the Palestinian people.” 

This platform specifically mentions building on the Abraham Accords, a series of normalization agreements between Israel and Arab nations, brokered by the Trump administration. The document now notes that Biden wants to build on it through a normalization deal between Israel and Saudi Arabia. 

Some progressive activists attempted to add a clause to the party platform, rejecting U.S. aid to Israel. However, those efforts fell flat, according to those familiar, emphasizing the platform was formed to reflect the president’s views on Israel. 

“I think the surprising thing for some may be that the Democratic platform is so strong and is a full-throated support of Israel,” Managing Director of Policy and Political Affairs at the nonpartisan American Jewish Committee Julie Rayman said.

“I’m sure that there are a number of Democrats who are more critical of Israel, who are looking at this and wishing that there was more or different, but from a Jewish communal perspective, there’s so much in there that is exactly what the Jewish community was hoping For and was looking to see,” Rayman added. 

There are some similarities to the 2020 platform, including opposition to Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS), and the recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital. It also builds on Biden’s pledge to fight against hate, highlighting the administration’s work countering antisemitism. 

Mark Mellaman, the president of the Democratic Majority for Israel and a longtime Democratic pollster, said he worked closely with the party and is pleased to see such strong platform language supporting Israel.

“The Democratic platform has a lot of meat, both in terms of what President Biden has done to support Israel and the U.S.-Israel relationship, and what the administration plans to do over the next four years,” Mellman said.

Republicans are criticizing the platform, pointing to a section where Democrats tie Trump’s decision to pull out of the Iran nuclear deal to the acceleration of Tehran’s nuclear program in which they are close to “being able to produce enough weapons-grade material for a bomb.”

“Criticizing Trump’s decision to pull out of the Iran Nuclear Deal, is not in our view, a policy in an 80-page platform of what they are going to do now about confronting Iran,” a representative from the Republican Jewish Coalition said. “There’s absolutely nothing in there about sanctions. There’s nothing about the oil sales and China buying their oil, there’s nothing in there about making sure they don’t have the funds to stop funding terrorism, the proxies.”

As questions continue to grow about whether Biden will remain at the top of the ticket, Mellman said he has no concerns that the platform could shift if a new candidate is nominated.

“I think this platform is going to be the platform of the Democratic Party. It’s been passed by the platform committee,” he said. “As a practical matter, I don’t think anybody is going to be ripping up the platform before the convention and starting a new one.”

The Republican platform 

The 16-page GOP document emphasized the party’s support of Israel but is far less descriptive than the 2016 platform. 

“We will stand with Israel, and seek peace in the Middle East,” it says. “We will rebuild our alliance network in the region to ensure a future of peace, stability and prosperity.”

The platform also mentions Trump’s vision of replicating Israel’s Iron Dome missile defense system that Israel deploys to stop missile attacks to protect American borders. It also vows in all-caps, to “DEPORT PRO-HAMAS RADICALS AND MAKE OUR COLLEGE CAMPUSES SAFE AND PATRIOTIC AGAIN.” 

Focusing on that point, the platform says, “Republicans condemn antisemitism, and support revoking Visas of Foreign Nationals who support terrorism and jihadism. We will hold accountable those who perpetrate violence against Jewish people.”

In 2016, the Republican platform went further on Israel, pledging an “unequivocal commitment to Israel,” and even called the Jewish state “an exceptional country that shares our most essential values.” The country is mentioned 19 times throughout that document and vowed to ensure “Israel maintains an qualitative military edge over any and all adversaries.” In the current platform, Israel is only mentioned once.

“Obviously the Democratic platform has so much more content and depth,” Rayman said. “In terms of identifying those strategic partnerships that are important to American interests, Israel is alone in the platform, which is also really important.”

“I think the Republican platform was probably more strategic in giving wiggle room. That’s something that they’ve prided themselves on historically, to sort of leave things a little bit open,” she added.

Republicans are touting their support of the Jewish state, putting Hamas’ attack and the retaliatory war in Gaza front and center throughout the convention, making a play for the large majority of Jewish Americans who have consistently voted for Democrats.

An orthodox Jewish student from Harvard, Shabbos Kestenbaum, who is suing the school for allegedly failing to protect Jewish students from discrimination over the past year took the stage. Orna and Ronen Neutra, the parents of an American citizen held by Hamas spoke, leading the crowd in a chant of “bring them home.” Republican Jewish Committee CEO Matt Brooks also addressed delegates for the first time.

“President Trump will bring back law and order so that American Jews can once again wear a kippah and walk the streets without fear,” Brooks said, waving a red kippah around with Trump’s name on it. “President Trump will stop the mobs on college campuses so Jewish students feel safe when they go to class.”

However, some Republicans are frustrated that the party’s platform wasn’t strong enough on Israel. Dennis Lennox, a Republican strategist from Michigan, called the document “arguably weaker than the Democratic platform on Israel.”

“In the case of Jewish Americans, the most important donor base of the Republican Party, Trump had the votes to win whatever platform he wanted, he didn’t need to roll our most important coalition members the way the Trump campaign did. It was political malpractice.”

Karyn Basle, a Florida delegate is trying to convince Jewish Democrats to exit the party, with a play-on word “Jexit” emblazoned on a cowboy hat she was wearing. A website for the group says “finally the time to #JEXIT the Democratic Party has never been more evident and we hope to welcome many more of our Jewish brothers and sisters who are finally seeing the light.”

Basle said she doesn’t have an issue with a very brief mention of Israel in the platform. 

“Actions speak louder than words; you can say anything you want; it’s what they do. [The Democrats] have proved over and over again over the last four years that they do not support Israel,” Basle said, speaking with the Washington Examiner in Milwaukee at the convention.

Rep. Mike Lawler (R-NY), whose district includes a significant number of Orthodox Jews, also downplayed the significance of the platform.

“I’m somebody who always found these party platforms as relatively stupid. What do they actually mean? The platform is the work we are actually doing in Congress, the work we are doing when we have the administration,” he said. “I think Republicans have been extremely strong in support of Israel.”

Democrats are drawing attention to several speakers who have been featured that have spread antisemitic rhetoric like Mark Robinson, the lieutenant governor of North Carolina now running for governor, who has made antisemitic comments and conservative leader Charlie Kirk, who defended Elon Musk’s endorsement of an antisemitic conspiracy theory. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) also spoke on Monday night, who has compared mask and vaccine mandates to treatment of Jews by the Nazis during the Holocaust and once suggested California wildfires were caused by a space laser controlled by a Jewish banking family. 

“I think people should be paying attention to the fact that Republicans put three antisemites into major prime time speaking roles at their convention and there was barely a bleep about it from anyone,” Mellman said. “That to me is shocking.”

Naomi Lim contributed to this report.